Media campaign to help promote responsible drinking

  • Published
  • By Kendahl Johnson
  • Kirtland Public Affairs
A media campaign will soon hit Kirtland with the intent of enhancing resiliency by dispelling common misconceptions about alcohol behaviors thereby promoting responsible drinking.

The campaign, called the Social Norms Project, capitalizes on the strong tendency of young people to conform to group patterns and expectations. Younger populations tend to categorically overestimate the amount of alcohol others in their peer group consume which distorts their perceptions and can even negatively shape the expectations they have for their own drinking behaviors. 

"The overall goal of the Social Norms Project is to reshape people's beliefs or perceptions about drinking based on the facts and not based on what they may perceive to be true," said Capt. Sarah Workman, Alcohol and Drug Abuse and Prevention and Treatment program manager.

Kirtland is one of about 20 Air Force bases to participate in this project thus far. Last year, airmen aged 18-24 completed an anonymous questionnaire on their personal drinking patterns and their perceptions of drinking norms among their peers. 

These questionnaires were used to gather credible data on the actual norms regarding perceptions, attitudes and behaviors relevant to alcohol use at Kirtland.  Based on the data, locally-tailored materials were developed to communicate the actual behavioral norms.

Kirtland is preparing to disseminate the materials through posters and other means in the upcoming months.

"The data collected has been shown to be effective in reshaping norms based on real drinking behaviors at other bases," Workman said. "The media messages will help shed some light on the true beliefs of Kirtland Airmen as it relates to alcohol use, which will ideally promote responsible drinking as a whole."

ADAPT provides substance abuse education to individuals identified for risky drinking as well as to the base community at large. For more information about the program, contact the ADAPT clinic at 846-3305.